The Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department is searching for three men suspected of taking part in a kidnapping scheme uncovered Saturday in Patterson.

Shortly before 10 p.m. Saturday the sheriff’s department received a 911 call stating that a man was being held for $800 ransom at a Patterson residence.

The investigation, which took several hours, ultimately led investigators to the 600 block of Spooner Court in Patterson.

The victim was kidnapped from his home in rural Stanislaus County and the suspects drove him to the Patterson residence, where they physically assaulted him over a nine hour period of time, Sheriff Adam Christianson said. The suspects believed the victim had stolen from them and demanded that the victim’s family pay for that stolen property. 

At one point during the investigation, the victim was allowed to leave the residence where he was being held, Christianson said. Deputies and detectives were able to safely rescue the victim and take him into protective custody. 

As investigators surrounded the residence, several suspects emerged including Jonathan Figueroa, 22 of Modesto. He was identified and arrested on a variety of criminal charges including kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, robbery, conspiracy by a person involved in gang activity and criminal gang activity. Figueroa is being held on $100,000 bail at the Stanislaus County Jail. 

Three additional suspects have been identified and are wanted in connection to the kidnapping. All three are criminal street gang members and considered armed and dangerous, Christianson said. Victor “Cuate” Sandoval, 21, of Patterson, Arturo “Rascal” Martinez, 20, of Modesto and Adan “Burner” Esquivel, 22, of Patterson are wanted for kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, armed robbery, conspiracy by a person involved in gang activity and criminal gang activity. 

Martinez is easily identifiable as he was involved in a previous gang related shooting. He lost his right eye after being shot in the head in December of 2012, near Alex & Sons Market in Modesto. 

Anyone with information about this investigation is encouraged to call Detective Frank Soria at 525-7080 

Calls to Crime Stoppers are anonymous and callers may be eligible for a cash reward. Leave a tip by calling Crime Stoppers at 521-4636. Tipsters can also e-mail tips at http://www.modestopolice.com/CrimeStoppers, or send information to Crime Stoppers by sending a text message to 274637. Type “TIP704” along with the message.